1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a reel unit. In particular, the present invention relates to a reel unit for a spinning reel on which a rotor having a bail tripping mechanism is rotatably supported thereon.
2. Background Information
The spinning reel includes a reel unit having a rod attachment leg portion adapted to be mounted to a fishing rod, a line-winding spool mounted on the reel unit and able to shift front and rear, and a rotor mounted rotatably on the reel unit for winding a fishing line around the spool. The reel unit includes a housing unit with a mechanism accommodating space in which various mechanisms such as a rotation mechanism for the rotor are mounted and a lid portion for covering the mechanism accommodating space.
A bail arm that is pivotal between a line-winding posture and a line-releasing posture is mounted on the rotor. The rotor has a first and a second rotor arms, and the bail arm is mounted on the front ends of the first and second rotor arms. The bail arm includes a first bail supporting member, a second bail supporting member, and a bail. The first bail supporting member is fitted pivotally on the front end of a first rotor arm. The first bail supporting member has a line roller on the front end thereof for guiding the fishing line. The second bail supporting member is fitted pivotally on the front end of a second rotor arm. The bail connects the two bail supporting members. When the bail arm is pivoted into the line-releasing posture, a bail tripping mechanism provided on the first rotor arm returns the bail arm back into the line-winding posture when the rotor starts rotating in the line-winding direction. A returning member is provided on the reel unit for making the bail tripping mechanism operate. The bail tripping mechanism has a moving member that moves in a disjunctive direction from the reel unit with the movement of the bail arm. The returning member has a sloped surface in a direction away from the reel unit for pressing the moving member in response to the rotation of the rotor in the line-winding direction. Usually, the lid portion is disposed to the right side when the reel is viewed from the front side, and the rotor rotates in the clockwise direction during line-winding when the reel is viewed from the front side. For this reason, the sloped surface is formed to protrude out to the front side gradually in the clockwise direction.
The timing for reversing the bail arm from the line-releasing posture to the line-winding posture is often times set when the first bail supporting member having the line roller is in the position away from the fishing rod, that is, when the first bail supporting member is disposed near the joined portion between the housing unit and the lid portion. In the bail arm, the first bail supporting member is disposed in a position nearest to the fingers of the angler holding the fishing rod. For this reason, if the bail arm is reversed at this timing, the first bail supporting member moves away from the fingers. As a result, it becomes difficult for the first bail supporting member to be in contact with the fingers that hold the fishing rod even if the bail arm is reversed, and this is preferable from a safety standpoint.
For this reason, the returning member is arranged in a position as far away as possible from the rod attachment leg portion of the reel unit. With the returning member arranged in the reel unit, something that has been known in the past is (for example, refer to Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 53-32191) something formed integrally on the front surface of the housing unit, or something (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-299161) formed as a separate body from the housing unit and held in place between the housing unit and the lid portion.
On the other hand, there has been something of (for example, refer to Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2001-103879) a cylindrical portion provided on the front portion of a reel unit, and an anti-reverse mechanism able to be mounted on the front portion of the cylindrical portion for preventing the rotor from rotating reversely. The cylindrical portion is formed integrally on the front side of a first flange portion on the housing unit of the reel unit. The first flange portion is formed so as to create a circular shape with a second flange portion formed on the front portion of the lid portion, and formed for covering the rear surface of the rotor with the second flange portion. A small gap is produced between the second flange portion and the rear surface of the cylindrical portion such as for mounting a seal member.
In conventionally known configuration where the returning member is formed integrally on the front surface of the housing unit, it is not necessary to have a fixation portion, compared to when it is formed as a separate body. Thus, it is not necessary to have a space and a fixation structure for fixation purpose. The configuration of the reel unit becomes simple. However, since, considering from a safety standpoint, the returning member has to be formed near the joined portion of housing unit and the lid portion, the sloped surface has to be formed on only the housing unit. For this reason, the slope of the sloped surface becomes steep, and a big rotating force, the so-called return force, is necessary for returning the bail arm by turning the handle.
In addition, in conventionally known configuration where the returning member is formed integrally on the front surface of the housing unit, it may be desirable to change the return force, depending on the type of fishing and the specification such as whether or not a bail braking mechanism is included for putting brakes on the bail, and so forth. However, to change the slope of the sloped surface of the returning member, it is necessary to correct the mold of the housing unit that is usually manufactured in a die press. As a result, it is difficult to change the slope of the sloped surface.
In conventionally known configuration where the returning member is fixed between the housing unit and the lid portion as a separate body, the sloped surface can be formed to be gentle, since the sloped surface can be formed on the lid portion side. However, when the moving member moves onto the sloped surface, stress will concentrate on the fixation portion, and it is necessary to have a comparatively large space for the fixation portion to maintain the strength of the fixation portion.